11 Growing together in diversity - Indo-German cooperation enhancing eye donation in North India.

In India, the most densely populated state is Uttar Pradesh in the Northern region. This state has a huge base of corneal blind population due to cornea infections, ocular trauma, and (chemical) burns.Successful cornea transplantation using human post-mortem donated cornea is a treatment modality.

1 Crisis becomes the norm: how a non-profit network withstands the pandemic.

SARS-CoV-2 (corona virus) presents the world with new kinds of challenges. The crisis mode that persisted in many countries also put a strain on the German health system: on the one hand, through the treatment of patients infected with corona, and on the other hand through the cancellation and postponement of elective operations. This had a corresponding impact on tissue donation and transplantation.

8 The donor of tomorrow: challenges posed by the pandemic, demographic change, and increased transplant requirements.

In the Corona pandemic, the importance of donor health for the supply of patients with high-quality transplants has once again become particularly apparent in the field of cornea donation.And there are further challenges ahead: Due to new operation methods such as lamellar techniques an earlier stage of disease can be treated hence patients are being operated at younger ages. At the same time, with demographic change, potential donors are getting older.

Preparation of human amniotic membrane for transplantation in different application areas.

The human amniotic membrane (hAM) is the inner layer of the placenta and plays protective and nutritional roles for the fetus during pregnancy. It contains multiple growth factors and proteins that mediate unique regenerative properties and enhance wound healing in tissue regeneration. Due to these characteristics hAM has been successfully utilized in ophthalmology for many decades.

Genetic Modification of Limbal Stem Cells to Decrease Allogeneic Immune Responses.

Limbal stem cell (LSC) transplantation is the only efficient treatment for patients affected by LSC deficiency (LSCD). Allogeneic LSC transplantation is one of the most successful alternative for patients with bilateral LSCD. Nevertheless, the high variability of the human leukocyte antigens (HLA) remains a relevant obstacle to long-term allogeneic graft survival.

Cornea Procurement and Processing up to 72 Hours: No Risk for Cornea Transplant Quality.

Background: The realization of tissue donations is bound to a tight timeframe. Depending on the type of tissue, time limits are specified within which the donation must be procured and processed. Otherwise, there is a risk of tissue quality loss with increasing time intervals from cardiovascular arrest.

Sleeping Beauty transposon-mediated transfection of retinal and iris pigment epithelial cells.

Purpose: Subretinal transplantation of retinal (RPE) or iris (IPE) pigment epithelial cells has been advocated as a treatment for retinal degeneration. However, to our knowledge, in patients with age-related macular degeneration no significant beneficial effects on vision have been shown. Since the transplanted cells did not appear to maintain a healthy avascular and neuroprotective environment, we postulate that it will be necessary to transplant cells that express elevated levels of anti-angiogenic and neuroprotective activities.

Presence of xenogenic mouse RNA in RPE and IPE cells cultured on mitotically inhibited 3T3 fibroblasts.

Purpose: Mitotically inhibited 3T3 fibroblasts are used as feeder layers to culture a variety of cells. However, transplantation of human cells cultured on mitotically arrested mouse cells poses potential risks, such as disease transfer and contamination with 3T3 cells. Bovine RPE and IPE cells were cultured on mitomycin-treated 3T3 fibroblasts, to examine cell characteristics and contamination by 3T3 products.

Preservation of photoreceptors in dystrophic RCS rats following allo- and xenotransplantation of IPE cells.

Purpose: To examine whether iris pigment epithelial (IPE) cells transplanted into the subretinal space of Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) rats have the ability to rescue photoreceptors.

Methods: Rat IPE (rIPE) or human IPE (hIPE) cells were transplanted subretinally in 23-day-old RCS rats. Sham injection and transplantation of ARPE-19 cells served as controls.

The in vitro and in vivo behaviour of retinal pigment epithelial cells cultured on ultrathin collagen membranes.

The transplantation of pigment epithelial cells as a therapeutic modality for retinal degeneration requires that the transplanted cells form a monolayer in the subretinal space that will establish communication with photoreceptors. Since previous studies have shown that transplanted cells in suspension do not form a monolayer, it will be necessary to transplant preformed pigment epithelial cell monolayers at the location of the exposed photoreceptors. To establish cell monolayers, retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells were cultured on ultrathin collagen membranes.

Novel organotypic culture model of adult mammalian neurosensory retina in co-culture with retinal pigment epithelium.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess survival of adult mammalian neurosensory retina cultured in contact with the layer of a choroid-retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) explant.

Methods: The entire adult porcine neurosensory retina and RPE-choroid layer were placed in tissue culture by juxtaposing both tissues in their original orientation. Culture of the neurosensory retina alone and freshly prepared retina were used as control.

Effects of bevacizumab (Avastin) on retinal cells in organotypic culture.

Purpose: Repetitive intravitreal injections of bevacizumab are a successful treatment option for exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The aim of this study was to evaluate the toxicity of bevacizumab in the adult mammalian neurosensory retina in culture.

Methods: Adult porcine neurosensory retinas were cultured adjoined to the retinal pigment epithelium-choroid layer (retina-RPE-choroid complex) in static culture for 3 days, whereas neural retinas alone were cultured in a perfusion chamber for 3 days.